Gaither wastes no time against Alonso

The Cowboys score a touchdown on their first offensive play, setting the tone in a 31-0 victory.

By ROD GIPSON
Published October 7, 2006

TAMPA - One offensive play.

That's all it took for Gaither to seize control of its contest against Alonso. Sure, it was the Cowboys' first offensive play of the game and there was still more than three and a half quarters to play, but the game belonged to Gaither from that point on.

By the time the contest was officially completed, Gaither's offense had rolled up big yardage and its defense had dominated, as the Cowboys shocked host Alonso 31-0 in a nondistrict game.

With its third straight win, Gaither improved to 5-1 on the season while the setback leaves Alonso 4-2.

"Our defense did a fantastic job," Gaither coach Mark Kantor said. "But our offense did a good job too, we can't forget that. We came out and played well in all three phases of the game, special teams included."

The one play that sparked the Cowboys was running back Jarvis Giles' 71-yard touchdown run on Gaither's first play from scrimmage. A quarter later, Gaither quarterback John Chestnut completed touchdown passes to Giles and Justin Lattimore to extend the lead.

The Ravens, meanwhile, struggled against the Gaither defense, failing to put together any significant scoring threats until late in the game. Alonso did not help itself, losing five fumbles and committing 14 penalties. Alonso's usually solid running game was limited to 193 yards, led by Kendrick Hopkins' 74 yards.

Gaither's running attack rolled up 243 yards, led by Giles, who had 124 yards on the ground and scored the Cowboys' last touchdown of the night on a 24-yard run.

"This (win) sets us up well," Kantor said. "We played well but the big one (Wharton) is next week. We'll have to play well over there."